Evi Nemeth, whose work on Unix and Linux, helped develop the languages behind the modern data bases is missing at sea and presumed dead.

Nemeth, 73, worked with Apple co-founder Steve Wozniak to established an IT scholarship programme, but is better known for her books on Unix and Linux.

Nemeth was among seven people cruising around New Zealand on an 85-year-old schooner yacht called the Nina. After a big storm, the boat was reported missing. New Zealand authorities spent days searching and have officially have called off rescue efforts. She was a retired professor from the University of Colorado at Boulder and an experienced sailor.

Besides working with Woz and her books, she also worked on some of the first systems that measure Internet traffic, and organised an international curriculum to train future Internet engineers

Lenovo is gearing up for the Consumer Electronics Show just like every other PC hardware manufacturer on the planet. But rather than waiting four more days to unveil its products to the public, the company has decided to give the press and its prospective consumers a sneak peek of what to expect on the show floors this year.

Back in November 2011, rumors abounded of a new ThinkPad X1 Hybrid that would essentially be “2 notebooks in 1” – a full-fledged notebook running Windows 7 (or Windows 8), and a low-power mode called “Instant Media Mode” (think netbook) running a custom Linux based OS. The rumors turned out to be true, and the device unveiled by the company today is essentially a flagship rehash of the current ThinkPad X1.

Lenovo's new ThinkPad X1 Hybrid, however, takes dual-booting to the next level by switching between operating system environments at the click of an icon, with no rebooting required, and by running Linux on its own dual-core Qualcomm processor.

In terms of hardware, the notebook features a 13.3-inch display coated with Gorilla Glass, the same material used on the iPhone. It comes with your choice of a Core i3, Core i5 or Core i7 Sandy Bridge processor as the main CPU, additional dual-core 1.2GHz Qualcomm Snapdragon APQ8060 processor, 1GB DDR3 RAM, 16GB of internal storage to power the secondary “Instant Media Mode” based on the custom Linux OS, a spill-resistant backlit keyboard, USB 3.0 and an optional SSD.

Lenovo claims that the new ThinkPad X1 Hybrid can run with up to 5 hours battery life on the Intel Core processor and up to 10 hours battery life on the Snapdragon APQ8060. Additionally, the notebook features “Rapid Charge” technology which allows it to hit an 80-percent charge in just 30 minutes. If these battery life numbers are tested and confirmed to be true, we may see Lenovo gain the upper hand in competition with the likes of Apple’s MacBook Air and several other Intel-based ultrabooks debuting over the next few months.

The Lenovo ThinkPad X1 Hybrid will start at $1,599 USD and is targeted at home users, students and professional business users. It will be available for purchase sometime in Q2 2012.